The Implementation of Video and Telephone Psychological Therapy for Adults Accessing Secondary NHS Community Mental Health Services A mixed-methods Evaluation to Understand What Works, for Whom and In What Circumstances

Abstract

Background The urgent response to the COVID-19 pandemic has precipitated many changes in the delivery of health services. One such change is the introduction of telemedicine (i.e. virtual consultations) at pace and in services that had previously relied on face-to-face interaction. NHS mental health services are at the forefront of this change, with the delivery of therapeutic interventions transitioning to virtual consultations rapidly. Healthcare innovation is rarely a simple linear process; accordingly, it is crucial evaluation approaches focus on how contextual factors influence implementation success or failure. The discipline of implementation science provides this approach, defined as the scientific study of methods to promote the systematic uptake of research findings into routine practice. Aim The study used an implementation science to evaluate the implementation of virtual therapy consultations and assess impact on service user outcomes